The 2026 eCom Trends Report
Top Report Findings: This is our sixth Trends Report with 300 owners representing $3.5...
Garret and Deeanne Akerson are the co-founders of Kindred Bravely, which creates maternity and nursing clothes that are beautiful, comfortable, and most importantly, useful. The company was founded in 2015 and two years later won the Shopify Build a BIGGER Business Competition as one of the fastest growing online retailers.
Garret and Deeanne have an incredibly successful business story, but in this episode we’re talking about something that doesn’t get discussed a lot: how do you build a meaningful and successful business while also raising kids? We’re getting candid on the parenting front and are talking about what Garret and Deeanne did well, what they didn’t do well, and what they learned from their experience. They also share the one key skill that they believe you should have to scale a company rapidly and have a successful outcome.
You’ll learn:
- What it was like building a successful business with young kids. (6:40)
- What they did to balance parenting and business life. (15:00)
- What they wish they had done differently. (26:15)
- How much they get their kids involved in the business. (31:45)
- How they get work done effectively while working from home. (34:45)
- How they use a hybrid homeschooling and regular schooling while running a business. (38:00)
- How Kindred Bravely was born. (41:20)
- How they transitioned from Amazon to Shopify. (44:45)
- How they balanced growth versus profitability. (48:00)
- The must-haves they look for when they’re hiring. (52:50)
- How they managed inventory in the early days. (56:15)
(With your host Andrew Youderian of eCommerceFuel.com and Garret and Deeanne Akerson of Kindred Bravely)
What Was Mentioned:
- Kindred Bravely
- Garret Akerson: LinkedIn | Twitter
- EcomCrew E331: Starting Out in Ecommerce with the Founders of Kindred Bravely
- Children interrupt BBC News interview – BBC News
- eCommerceFuel Forum
- Klaviyo
- One Click Upsell – Increase Sales 15%+ with Pre-and Post-purchase Upsells. (On average, Shopify users increase sales 15% immediately after installing the app!)
Image credit to Nattanan Kanchanaprat from Pixabay.
Post by Andrew Youderian
Founder and Chief Instigator, eComFuel
Andrew quit an early finance job to sell CB radios online — an admittedly unorthodox career path. It set him on a course to found and sell multiple businesses, host a decade-running podcast, lecture at Harvard Business School and create eComFuel, the leading community for 7- and 8-figure online business owners. Andrew is fascinated with branding, AI, building community, investing and growing meaningful businesses that don't require sacrificing what truly matters.
